Proteus bacteria species from hospital sewage and Mfoundi River in Yaounde (Cameroon, Central Africa): Comparison of the diversity, abundance and susceptibility against some β-lactams, Quinolones and Aminoglycosides antibiotics

Abstract

Species of the genus Proteus are the cause of several infections and represent one of the microorganisms commonly involved in hospital infections. These infections are sometime difficult to treat because the antibiotic resistance phenomenon, which represents one of the greatest health challenges today. This study aimed at comparing the diversity, abundance and antimicrobial susceptibility of Proteus species isolated from hospital wastewater and Mfoundi River in Yaounde (Cameroon, Central Africa). The physicochemical parameters were measured using appropriate techniques while bacteria were isolated using standard methods and identified using the API 20E systems. The antibiogram tests were carried out using the Müller-Hinton antibiotic disc diffusion method. Antibiotics used belonged to the β-lactam, Quinolones and Aminoglycoside groups. The results obtained show that these waters are slightly alkaline (pH>7.5) and contain dissolved ions (electrical conductivity>600µS/cm; TDS>120mg/L). These waters host various Proteus species such as P. mirabilis, P. penneri and P. vulgaris, which were mostly represented in hospital wastewater. The prevalence of antimicrobial resistance varied with respect to the Proteus species and antibiotic groups. All Proteus strains were resistant to β-lactams and Quinolones. Besides, 41.8% of strains of isolated species were resistant to Gentamycin and 87.5% were sensitive to Amikacin. Most of the bacteria strains isolated in wastewater and surface water were resistant to all the antibiotics tested. Many bacterial strains tested were multi-resistant (82.76%). This multidrug resistance was more expressed in P. mirabilis and P. vulgaris species isolated from wastewater and upstream river. This represents a health risk for humans and the aquatic environment.